A Glare

Splash, splash, splash...

Rain poured down in sheets.

Zhao Kongcheng gripped his straight saber, his dark red cloak already soaked through. Covered in blood, he looked utterly wretched.

Yet his eyes shone as brightly as stars!

So... this was a Forbidden Ruin.

Amazing!

Fucking amazing!

Across from him, the Ghost-faced King stared dumbfoundedly at its empty right arm. Its pale ghostly face seemed twisted by shock.

It could not understand why the rat it had been toying with one-sidedly just moments ago could suddenly unleash such terrifying power.

But it was not intelligent enough to understand—and... it did not have the time.

Zhao Kongcheng moved.

Under the effects of Ghost God's Pull, his body had forgotten all its injuries and returned to peak condition. Like an arrow released from its string, he shot toward the Ghost-faced King!

"Roar roar roar!!"

The Ghost-faced King's eyes turned crimson. Having lost its right arm, it had completely fallen into a berserk state!

Muscles bulged all over its body, and its entire frame swelled by a full size. Its legs bent, and its massive body suddenly leaped up, spraying water everywhere.

In midair, the two figures collided at blinding speed!

Boom! Boom! Boom!!

Their movements were so fast they blurred. Black crescent-shaped blade arcs scattered in every direction, carving countless savage gashes into the ground around them!

Originally, Zhao Kongcheng's blade could not even break through the Ghost-faced King's defenses. In both strength and speed, he had been at an absolute disadvantage. That was the fundamental reason he had been beaten so badly before.

But now, with Life-Annihilating Flash Moon, Zhao Kongcheng's destructive power had reached a terrifying level. Every slash left a deep bloody wound on the Ghost-faced King's body!

Though Zhao Kongcheng still could not match the Ghost-faced King in strength or speed, now that he had made up for his lack of destructive power, he could compensate for all his other shortcomings with experience.

Even though his physical abilities were far inferior to the Ghost-faced King's, he could still pin the monster to the ground and beat the hell out of it!

The facts proved that Zhao Kongcheng had not been lying.

Once he had a Forbidden Ruin, he could kill the Ghost-faced King eight hundred times over!

Given enough time, killing the Ghost-faced King alone would only be a matter of time... but the problem was, he did not have that much time.

Though Ghost God's Pull could unleash all of a person's potential, it did not last long. Nearly ten seconds had already passed since Zhao Kongcheng unleashed his Forbidden Ruin, and he did not have much time left.

As he fought the Ghost-faced King fiercely, Zhao Kongcheng could clearly feel his strength fading. The pain that had been suppressed was gradually returning...

Even the black crescents he slashed out were getting smaller and smaller!

The Ghost-faced King seemed to sense the change in his condition. At the cost of forcibly draining its own essence, it launched an even fiercer offensive!

After several more exchanges, the Ghost-faced King seized an opening and landed a heavy punch on Zhao Kongcheng's chest!

Boom—!

A dull impact rang through the air. Zhao Kongcheng flew away like a kite with its string cut, crashing heavily onto the ground!

"Hiss... why does it hurt so much..."

Pain crashed over every nerve in Zhao Kongcheng's body like raging waves. He gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot.

Coughing up blood, he slowly crawled up from the mud...

His gaze remained fixed on the Ghost-faced King, and the fire burning in his eyes had yet to fade.

He could still breathe. His Forbidden Ruin was still active. He could still fight!

The Ghost-faced King was not dead yet...

He could not fall!

He braced himself with his straight saber and staggered to his feet. Just then, a sudden change occurred!

Boom—!!

A tremendous explosion came from behind Zhao Kongcheng. The sky above trembled slightly, and a crack split open...

This was...

Zhao Kongcheng stared blankly at the sky, as though he had thought of something. He suddenly turned around!

Not far behind him, the invisible canvas that had shrouded this sky had already cracked open at one corner...

And through that incomplete rift, a golden-eyed youth slowly walked in.

Zhao Kongcheng's mouth fell open, his expression as though he had seen a ghost!

"You, you you you... how did you get in?!"

Lin Qiye brushed aside his rain-soaked hair. His pupils were like blazing furnaces, scorching and sacred. He sighed helplessly.

"I have to say, this Boundless Void Domain really is tough. But fortunately, I have these eyes. They can find its weakest point, and fortunately..."

It was night."

Zhao Kongcheng had only understood the first sentence, but it still failed to answer the doubts in his heart:

"You clearly only just entered the 'Lamp' realm. How do you have such tremendous strength? No... you don't even have a weapon. How did you break open the Boundless Void Domain?"

"You might not believe me if I told you." Lin Qiye spoke calmly. "I glared at it, and it opened."

Zhao Kongcheng: ...

Lin Qiye had not lied. Under the enhancement of the night, he could feel that his eyes had been greatly strengthened as well. It was not as exaggerated as fivefold, but at least doubled.

Before obtaining the Starry Night Dancer, he had been able to solo a Ghost-faced Man with Seraphim Divine Might. With the night enhancing him, he could also use Divine Might to break open the Boundless Void Domain.

The only problem was that it consumed far too much Mental Power. Just that single glare had nearly drained him dry.

Lin Qiye looked at the battered Ghost-faced King, then at the blade marks scattered across the ground. The look he gave Zhao Kongcheng immediately turned strange. "And you said you didn't have a Forbidden Ruin? Is that something a human could slash out?"

Zhao Kongcheng could not be bothered to explain, because... he truly did not have much time left.

"Stop talking. Get to the side."

"I can help you fight."

"I know. Get to the side first." Zhao Kongcheng turned to look at him. "One slash. Let me make one more slash. Once I'm done with this slash, it won't be too late for you to help me."

"Oh." Lin Qiye stepped aside.

Zhao Kongcheng took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the hilt, his eyes fixed on the Ghost-faced King in the distance.

"Kid."

"Yeah?"

"Watch this slash carefully."

"Why?"

"Because this slash... is going to be damn cool."

"..."

Before Lin Qiye could even show a look of disdain, Zhao Kongcheng violently kicked off the ground and charged at the Ghost-faced King with astonishing speed!

The Ghost-faced King seemed to realize that the man before it was already at the end of his rope. Rather than clash with him head-on, it stayed where it was, warily prepared to block his attack at any moment.

The light in Zhao Kongcheng's eyes burned like a torch, growing brighter and brighter.

He tore through the curtain of rain and rushed toward the Ghost-faced King, without the slightest flourish, he raised his hand, and swung his blade.

An unprecedentedly massive crescent tore through the night sky, streaking across the heavens at a speed too fast for the naked eye to follow, splitting every raindrop in its path in two.

That slash was too fast—so fast that even the mighty Ghost-faced King could not easily evade it.

Even if it wanted to dodge, its current condition would not allow it to.

And so, the black crescent swept across the sky, gently, severing the savage head crowned with a pale ghost face.